https://cites.org/eng/news/sg/..._by_CITES_CMS_300516



Lion Range State Meeting - Joint statement by CITES - CMS


Joint Statement by
John E. Scanlon, Secretary General of CITES & Bradnee Chambers, Executive Secretary of CMS


Distinguished delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is with great pleasure that we welcome you to this very important and timely meeting.

Firstly, let us express our most sincere thanks to H.E. Ms. Maria Mutagamba, Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities of Uganda, for hosting this meeting and for investing her time and energy into this process.

Secondly, we would like to thank the Governments of Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom for their generous financial support that has enabled this meeting to take place.

Money bills and the coats of arms of States usually bear images of importance to a nation. In Africa many money bills bear the image of a lion. There are also 13 African States1 that have a lion in their coat of arms. However, only seven of those 13 States are participating in the meeting today, being the seven States where lions are still existent.

The fact that lions are depicted in so many State symbols shows how much appreciation countries within Africa have for this remarkable species. The fact that lions are also discussed within the frameworks of CITES and CMS shows that it is not only in Africa that countries care for lions but that strong support is evident from the international community to protect and conserve this iconic African species.

Studies show that the main threats for lions are habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict and prey depletion as a result of poaching for bushmeat. In its 2015 Red List Assessment, IUCN found that lion populations in Western, Central and Eastern Africa have declined by 60% over the past 21 years, which is three lion generations. However, in four Southern African countries, namely Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, lions have been assessed as increasing by 12% over the same period.

Strong conservation and protection measures are needed to revert the downward trends evident in Western, Central and Eastern Africa.

This meeting is timed to feed into the forthcoming CITES Conference of Parties (CoP 17) at which a proposal to uplist lions from CITES Appendix II to Appendix I will be considered. It is also being held in response to the call of the last CMS Conference of Parties (CoP 11) for lion range States to come together to discuss lion conservation across Africa and the possibility of listing the African lion under CMS.

As you know, CITES regulates international trade in wild fauna and flora and CMS focuses on the protection and conservation of migratory species and their habitats.

This meeting therefore provides you with a unique opportunity to:

Discuss lion conservation across Africa within the context of both CITES and CMS, drawing on each Convention’s focus and complementarity.
Consider the implications of listing lions under CITES Appendix I and CMS Appendices.
Deliberate how local people may benefit from these conservation measures.
When considering the prospect of listing lions under CITES Appendix I you may want to consider how the proposal aligns to the CITES biological criteria for Appendix I listing? Equally, when considering listing under the CMS you may want to consider the rationale for a CMS Appendix I listing versus an Appendix II listing of the African lion?

These questions should be frankly and openly discussed and debated.

This meeting also provides an opportunity for African lion range States to come together to discuss different approaches to lion conservation. Given that lion populations are declining in three of four regions in Africa, this is an opportunity for countries to learn about what has worked and to exchange views on challenges and opportunities. For example why are lion populations in Southern African countries increasing, while they are in decline in all other regions? What are the best practices and are the lessons learned?

Finally, this meeting provides an opportunity to look beyond CITES and CMS and develop a long-term comprehensive vision for lion conservation on the African continent.

How you, as participants from all lion range States, wish to conduct the discussions at this meeting and consider joint decisions or agreements is a matter for you. As Secretary General of CITES and Executive Secretary of CMS, we extend our most sincere thanks for your participation, wish you well with your deliberations, and offer our full support to each one of you in this important endeavour.

Thank you.


[1] Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, Kingdom of Swaziland and Togo. There are no more lions in Congo, the Gambia, Morocco, Sierra Leone and Tunisia.

https://cites.org/eng/saving_l...rees_on_ways_forward



Joint press release

Saving lions: Africa agrees on ways forward
First African lion Range States meeting led by CITES and CMS
brings about constructive outcomes in the lead up to CITES CoP17 and CMS COP12

Entebbe, Uganda, 1 June 2016– In a historic move, representatives of 28 African lion Range States have reached broad agreement to secure the survival of this iconic species in the wild across Africa.

The continent-wide consensus on the conservation, management and restoration of the lion (Panthera leo) and its habitat in Africa was reached at a meeting hosted by the Ugandan Government and jointly convened by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) from 30 to 31 May in Entebbe.

According to the 2015 IUCN Red List, African lion populations have experienced an overall decline of 43 per cent between 1993 and 2014. While populations increased in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe by 12 per cent over the same period thanks to good wildlife management, other sub-populations in the rest of Africa have plummeted by 60 per cent.

The final communiqué agreed at the two-day inter-governmental meeting, shows consensus among African lion Range States on the importance of conserving lions across the continent and identifies a number of practical actions.

These include: involving local communities in conservation activities and benefit-sharing, mitigating human-lion conflicts, and retaliation killing or poisoning by cattle herders and pastoralists, improving protected area management to benefit lions and restoring connectivity between fragmented lion populations. Countries also agreed on the need to investigate further the illegal trade in lion bones and other parts, the introduction of wildlife and ecosystem-based land-use practices and the need to step up transboundary collaboration to address the plight of African Lions.

“African lion Range States share a common objective to ensure the survival of lions in the wild. There is agreement on the threats and, with a few exceptions, the way forward. CITES and CMS are delighted to offer their support to Range States to achieve their objective, with robust scientific support coming from IUCN”, said John E. Scanlon, Secretary-General of CITES.

A carefully crafted consensus on the topic of trophy hunting was also agreed in Entebbe, with all lion Range States present accepting that trophy hunting of lions, if well managed, is a good conservation tool that should not be jeopardized by CITES or CMS. In the communiqué, the 28 Range States “Highlight the benefits that trophy hunting, where it is based on scientifically established quotas, taking into account the social position, age and sex of an animal, have, in some countries, contributed to the conservation of lion populations”.

Habitat loss and degradation is the predominant threat to lions in Africa, triggered by human settlements encroaching into lion habitat. Prey depletion as a result of poaching for bushmeat, andindiscriminate killing and livestock are other major causes of decline. Furthermore, there are concerns about the illegal trade in lion parts for medicinal purposes, and improvements in the management of trophy hunting have been recommended.

"The sharp declines in lion populations over the last decade mean there is clearly an urgent need to address the pressures affecting this majestic species. Strengthening the coordination and collaboration amongst the lion countries in Africa through workshops such as the one convened by CMS and CITES in Entebbe is an important step towards reaching this goal," said Bradnee Chambers, Executive Secretary of CMS.

Both CMS and CITES are guided by their respective mandates to address threats to the African lion.

At the next CITES Conference of the Parties (CoP17) to be held later this year in South Africa, a proposal will be discussed for higher protection by transferring the African lion from Appendix II to Appendix I. Furthermore, various aspects of the trade in and management of lions will be discussed at CoP17, including guidance for sustained trophy hunting and enforcement.

CMS for its part is implementing a decision taken at COP11 to promote lion conservation across Africa and pave the way for a listing on Appendix II of CMS at COP12, which will take place 22-28 October 2017 in Manila.

"The meeting in Entebbe has been remarkably constructive, and has helped for the first time to bring together African lion Range States to deliberate on the plight of the species. It has demonstrated how a combination of local and regional efforts as well as regulation of international trade by CITES and enhanced cooperation through CMS can promote the conservation of the species and its habitats. African lion Range States call upon CITES, CMS and other partners to support their efforts to conserve and restore this iconic species across the continent,” said Mr. George Owoyesigire, Ag. Asst. Commissioner for Wildlife Conservation at the Ugandan Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, who chaired the meeting held in Entebbe from 30 to 31 June 2016.

The meeting in Entebbe was made possible thanks to financial support from the Governments of Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It was also the first time that CITES and CMS have jointly convened such a meeting.

Note to editors:

For more information, contact:

Florian Keil, Coordinator of the Joint Communications Team at the UNEP/CMS and UNEP/AEWA Secretariat, Tel: +49 (0) 228 8152451, florian.keil@unep-aewa.org

Liu Yuan, Programme and Communications Officer, at the CITES Secretariat, Tel: +41 22 917 8130, yuan.liu@cites.org

About CITES

With 182 Parties, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is now one of the world's most powerful tools for wildlife conservation through the regulation of international trade. Thousands of species of wild animals and plants are internationally traded and used by people in their daily lives for food, health care, housing, souvenirs, leisure, cosmetics, clothing or fashion.

CITES regulates international trade in over 35,000 species of wild plants and animals, including their products and derivatives, to ensure their survival in the wild with benefits for the livelihoods of people and the global environment. The CITES permit system seeks to ensure that international trade in listed species is sustainable, legal and traceable.

CITES was signed in Washington D.C. on 3 March 1973, and entered into force on 1 July 1975.

Learn more about CITES by visiting www.cites.org or connecting to:

www.twitter.com/CITES
www.facebook.com/CITES
www.youtube.com/c/CITES
www.flickr.com/CITES

About CMS

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals aims to conserve terrestrial, aquatic and avian migratory species throughout their range. It is an intergovernmental treaty, concerned with the conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale. Since the Convention's entry into force in 1979, its membership has grown steadily to include 123 Parties from Africa, Central and South America, Asia, Europe and Oceania.

www.cms.int

Lions

Lions, Panthera leo, are listed on CITES Appendix II, with the Asian subspecies, Panthera leo persica, listed on Appendix I. The species is not currently listed on the CMS Appendices.

quote:

A carefully crafted consensus on the topic of trophy hunting was also agreed in Entebbe, with all lion Range States present accepting that trophy hunting of lions, if well managed, is a good conservation tool that should not be jeopardized by CITES or CMS.

Good to see that trophy hunting was properly recognized as a "good conservation tool that should not be jeopardized".